Late Love
by Storyfairy10
Summary: Maleficent didn't know why her daughter thought that love was wonderful. That is, until she overheard people talking about a plan to put a spell on Mal. Will Maleficent be able to save her daughter?
1. Learning the plan

Late Love

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Descendants. I'll try to update regularly, but I'm not always the best at doing that.**

It was the middle of the afternoon when Maleficent broke out of the cage her daughter kept her in. Mal told her that it was for her own safety, but she still didn't like it.

In fact, she didn't like any of what has happened. She was once the most powerful villain in the world, and was so close to ruling the world. If her daughter didn't fall in love with a prince she met, they would've been able to rule the world together. Now, she was small enough for Mal to hold her in one hand and powerless to change it.

She wanted to get away. She didn't have a plan, and didn't feel as though she needed one. Once she was out, she would be able to find a way to reverse the spell and try to rule the world again, this time without her daughter.

Just then, she heard the door open. Not wanting to be caught and put back in her cage, she ran and hid under some clothes that Evie threw on the floor after deciding they weren't what she wanted to wear. She expected it to be Mal or Evie, since it was their dorm. However, it was Chad Charming.

 _Weird_ , Maleficent thought. She knew that her daughter often had friends from Auradon over, but Mal was usually with them, and the only time she saw Chad was when he came to convince Evie to do his homework for him. By the way Evie and Mal talked about him, Maleficent could tell they didn't like him.

A strange feeling came to Maleficent. It was a kind of anger, but not the same kind she felt when Mal refused to give her the fairy godmother's magic wand. It was as though she wanted Chad to leave before she can do anything in the room. If her mind wasn't focused on Chad's actions, she may have noticed her becoming slightly larger.

Chad was looking around for something for a couple of minutes until he pulled a purple book from under her bed. "Perfect," he muttered to herself.

This made Maleficent's blood boil. She knew from Mal's and Evie's conversations that the book was Mal's diary. No one was allowed to read that. For what seemed like the millionth time today, she cursed her small size. She watched helplessly as Chad wrote in Mal's diary.

Chad pulled out his cell phone and dialled a number. There was a few seconds of pause before he spoke.

"Did you get Mal to eat the cursed strawberry yet?" There was another pause. "Well, hurry up. I'm just about to make it look like Mal decided to leave Auradon, but that won't work if she's still alive and able to come back." With that, Chad hung up the phone and left the room.

Maleficent felt as though her heart stopped. Did he say something about putting a curse on her little girl?

Regret filled up inside her. She never considered what Mal wanted in life, believing that a life of evil was the best for anyone. Now, she didn't care if Mal wanted to rule the world or raise a family with Ben. All she wanted now was for Mal to live, and for them to have a second chance to be close, like a mother should be to her daughter.

She thought about how much her daughter learned to love. Even after seeing her mom almost kill one of her friends and almost take over the world, she still decided to take care of Maleficent. She fed her every morning, and would take the time to tell her what happened during the day. She also seemed happy whenever Ben was around. _Maybe love is wonderful._

Suddenly, Maleficent grew to her normal size and changed into human form. She was just about to leave the room when Evie came. She stared at Maleficent in shock.

"Do you know where Mal is?" Maleficent asked.

Evie crossed her arms. "Why would I tell you? I bet that you're just asking so you can get your revenge."

Maleficent sighed. "Look, someone's about to give Mal a cursed strawberry, and I have to stop it. You're either helping me or getting out of my way."

"She's at the enchanted lake," Evie said. "But if you do anything to hurt her, you'll wish we never met her."

Maleficent turned to leave. "Stay here," she said when she saw Evie about to follow. "Mal may come here after she's cursed, and I don't want her alone." With that, she ran out of the building.


	2. Finding Mal

**Note: Greg is an OC. He is Grumpy dwarf's son. I can't guarantee when each update would come. It usually takes me at least 2 days to write and proofread a chapter (more if I have writer's block or get busy), and I sometimes don't start the next chapter right away. I'll try to be update regularly, though.**

Maleficent ran as fast as she could to the enchanted lake. She wished she could go there as a dragon, so that she could get there faster and do more damage to the person cursing Mal if she had to. But she knew that she had to see Mal clearly, and flying above the trees would block her sight. Besides, she needed Mal to feel comfortable enough to trust her, and her dragon form was intimidating.

She was vaguely aware of how the people around saw her. Most got out of the way, which was good. She didn't want to hurt anyone, but she also didn't want anyone to slow down her search for her daughter. The people who did stand up against her weren't that strong, so she easily pushed them out of the way, making sure she didn't hurt anyone.

She didn't know how far she ran until she saw a boy with Mal. She hid behind a nearby tree so see what was going on. The boy was holding a bag of strawberries, and Mal was clutching her stomach. She looked at the ground, and saw two strawberry stems on the ground. "I'm too late," Maleficent muttered in a voice so quiet that no one could hear.

"Come on," the boy said. "I know someone close by who's even better at healing than the school nurse."

"I'm fine, Greg," Mal said. "I just need to go to my dorm and lie down."

"Please, Mal," Greg said, grabbing her wrist. "I can't just ignore someone who's sick."

Just then, Maleficent came out of her hiding spot. "You're not going anywhere with my daughter."

"Mom?" Mal asked. "What are you doing here? And how did you get back to your normal size?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Greg said. "She found a way to return to her normal size and came for revenge. We have to go now!"

"Don't listen to him!" Maleficent said. "I overheard Chad talking to someone about giving you cursed strawberries."

"You're lying," Greg said.

Maleficent turned to Mal. "It looks like you have a stomachache. Did you have one before eating the strawberries?"

Mal shook her head no, so Maleficent continued. "And how much time passed between eating the strawberries and feeling sick?"

Mal eyes Greg suspiciously. "Not much. Maybe a few seconds."

"Exactly," Maleficent said. "I know you decided not to be evil anymore, but I'm certain you didn't forget how cursed food works."

Mal tried to get away from Greg, but he grabbed her arm before she could. "You're not going anywhere."

Maleficent tried to free Mal, but Greg pulled her out of the way. "You better be careful of what you do. If I say that you attacked me, it'll be your word against mine."

"You won't get away with it," Mal said. "I'll tell the fairy godmother everything."

Greg laughed. "Who said you'd be there? You'll be tied up and left to suffer my curse's effect while everyone thinks that you left Auradon."

This was too much for Maleficent. She pushed Greg into the lake, pulling Mal away just before Greg hit the water.

Greg caught up angrily. He seemed to be ready to try to take Mal away again, but Maleficent wasn't ready to give up.

She made her eyes turn green. "You do anything else to hurt Mal, and you'll get to see my dragon form."

Maleficent hoped that she convinced Greg to give up, but that didn't seem to be the case. He ran up to them and was about to grab Mal again. Fortunately, Mal seemed to have enough strength inside her for a kick right into Greg's knee, making him fall down.

"You'll never get the best of me," Mal said.

"Good girl," Maleficent said.

"You think you're so tough now," Greg said. "But I poisoned the entire bag of strawberries. One usually works just fine, but you decided to help out by taking an extra dose of the curse."

"Let's get out of here," Mal said.

Maleficent nodded and turned into a dragon. Together, they flew away. They were near a small clearing when Mal asked "Can we stop? I don't feel so good."

Maleficent hesitated. Her dragon form was quicker, but would it help in the long run? The yard in front of Auradon Prep might have several students, which wouldn't be good. Even if they decided they didn't have to defend their school against her, it would still be hard to land with them around. She thought about flying a little closer, but then remembered there were trees between them and the schoolyard, which would prevent them having a safe landing. She had to land there.

Slowly, she landed on the ground and returned to her normal form. Mal was sitting on a nearby log.

"What are you doing?" Maleficent asked. "We have to keep going."

"Can't we rest for five minutes?" Mal asked. "It feels like everything's spinning."

"That's why I need to get you help," Maleficent said.

Mal went to stand up, but then her dizziness overtook her and she fell to the ground. Maleficent caught her and helped steady her.

Without another word, Maleficent began helping Mal towards the school. "Why are you helping me?" Mal asked.

"I couldn't just stand by after hearing someone plan on putting a curse on you," Maleficent said.

Mal looked down. "I thought you didn't love me."

Maleficent was speechless. Did she love her daughter before? She thought she did. After all, she did everything she could to make Mal ready for the day that they escape from the Isle of the Lost and take over Auradon. But if she loved Mal before, then why did she shrink to such a small size?

"I do love you," Maleficent said.

Mal smiled, then quickly stopped clutched her stomach again. "Mal?" Maleficent asked.

"Mom, what did the spell do?" Mal asked, tears forming in her eyes. "It feels like someone kicked me!"

"Let's get you back to your dorm," Mal said. "I'm sure the Spellbook I gave you has a spell to help." Mal nodded, and Maleficent helped her back to her dorm.


	3. Reversing the spell

**I know the rhyme Evie says when using the magic mirror isn't that good (and doesn't exactly rhyme) but I never been good at rhymes so please bare with me. Also, the plants needed for the potion are completely made up.**

Maleficent walked back to Auradon with Mal. She noticed that people were staring at her, but would go back to their own business when Mal glared at them. _I guess she became more popular here_.

The only person who intervened was Ben, who ran up to them as soon as he saw Mal. "Mal!" he said. "Are you O.K?"

"Some creep put a curse on me," Mal said.

"What?" Ben demanded. "Who was it?"

"I think his name was Greg," Maleficent said. "But Chad was in on it to."

"Take care of Mal," Ben said. "I'll handle Chad and Greg."

"Greg may still be at the enchanted lake," Mal said. "I kicked his knee."

Ben nodded and left, letting Mal and Maleficent go to the dorm. There, Evie, Jay, and Carlos were there. Once they saw Mal, they rushed up to greet her.

"What happened?" Jay asked. He looked at Maleficent. "Did you do this?"

"No," Mal said. "Greg did."

"Who's Greg?" Carlos asked.

"He sits behind me in one of my classes," Evie said. "I don't know that much about him, but Doug mentioned that they're cousins, and that he keeps complaining about us being here."

Maleficent helped Mal to her bed, where she lied down. "I'll get the Fairy Godmother," Carlos said. "She may be able to help." Before waiting for an answer, Carlos ran out the door.

"Where's the Spellbook?" Maleficent asked.

"In the drawer on my nightstand," Mal answered.

Maleficent opened the drawer of the nightstand. "Can I help with anything?" Evie asked.

"Get your magic mirror," Maleficent said. "You can ask it what the reversal spell is."

Evie looked around the room. "I will as soon as I can."

"What do you mean?" Maleficent asked.

"I kind of misplaced the mirror," Evie said.

"What?" Maleficent exclaimed.

Tears formed in Evie's eyes. "I never needed it after deciding to use my own intelligence, so I forgot where I put it."

"Find it," Maleficent said.

Evie nodded and began looking around their room. Maleficent tried to focus on the Spellbook, but couldn't. She kept looking at Mal, who seemed to be getting worse. She was clutching her stomach continuously, and was beginning to sweat.

Just then, the Fairy Godmother and Carlos went in. "How did this happen?" the Fairy Godmother asked.

"Someone named Greg gave Mal two strawberries, both of which were cursed," Maleficent said. "He was working with Chad."

The Fairy Godmother sat down on Mal's bed. "How do you feel?"

"Awful," Mal said. "My stomach hurts and I'm so dizzy."

"This is why I'm so worried," Maleficent said. "She's never been someone to complain when she's sick. Between that and how she looks, I know the spell's pretty strong."

"Maybe she was just afraid of you to say anything before," Jay said.

"We're not here to place blame, especially when it's not related to what's happening now," the Fairy Godmother said. "We just have to figure out what curse was put on Mal, so we can find a spell to reverse it."

Maleficent tried to keep a straight face, but Jay's words stung. She knew she wasn't the best mother to Mal, and hoped that one day, she would be able to make it right. She was trying her best, but Jay's words would always have some truth to them. She had sixteen years of what she did to undo, and didn't think she could.

Evie pulled the magic mirror out from under Mal's drawings on the desk. "How did it get there?"

"Not important," Maleficent said. "Use it to find a cure."

Evie looked at the mirror. "Mirror, mirror, don't make it worse. Tell me how to stop Mal's curse."

Evie waited for the answer to come. "It says that the only potion strong enough needs Vaci root, an Arimice flower, and a leaf from a Gelium tree."

"Those are pretty rare," the Fairy Godmother said. "We don't have them in the school, but I know where to get them."

Maleficent looked at Mal, then at the Fairy Godmother. "Are they close? I don't know how much longer Mal can last."

The Fairy Godmother thought for a moment. "They aren't very far from the school, but going to all three would take a while. We'd probably be able to get any one of them in time, but not all of them."

"Isn't there a car or something?" Carlos asked.

"There is, but the forest they're in is big." the Fairy Godmother said. "A car could get someone closer, but most of the journey would have to be on foot."

"Why don't we split up?" Jay suggested. "It'll go faster."

"Good idea," Carlos said. "I'll take the Gelium leaf."

"I'll take the flower," Evie said.

"I guess that leaves me with the root," Jay said.

The Fairy Godmother nodded. "Once you get the plants, meet me at the potion lab. I'll mix them there." She looked at Mal. "Why don't you take care of Mal until we get back?"

Maleficent nodded and watched as the other left. Once, they were gone, Mal looked at Maleficent.

"Mom?" Mal asked.

"Yes, Pumpkin?"

"Everything will be O.K, right?" Mal asked.

Maleficent forced a smile. "It will. Your friends will come back in time to make the potion, and it'll be like nothing ever happened."

"But what if something happens to them?" Mal asked. "It'll be my fault for eating the strawberries."

"You didn't tell them to go," Maleficent said. "They chose to go on their own. Besides, they can take care of themselves."

Mal smiled. "I guess you're right."

Maleficent put a hand on her daughter's forehead. "You're burning up," she said. "Why don't I get you a cool cloth for your forehead?"

"Thanks," Mal said.

Maleficent left, and returned a few minutes later with the cloth. She put it on Mal's forehead. "Does that feel better?"

"Yeah," Mal said. "Thanks."

"Just hang in there," Maleficent said. "Everything will be O.K."


	4. Waiting and Talking

**Sorry if this chapter's later than expected. I had writer's block. I also may update slower than I did before. I started school, so I'll be busy with that. I promise that I'll try my best to update regularly.**

Maleficent looked out the window, hoping to see the car that was going to bring Jay, Carlos, and Evie back to the school. However, when she looked, the car was nowhere to be seen.

"Mom?" Mal asked.

Maleficent looked at her daughter. "I'm sure your friends will be here soon."

Mal forced a smile. "Maybe the car got here while you weren't looking?"

"Maybe," Maleficent said.

She doubted that was the case. She couldn't see the parking lot from Mal's dorm, but she was certain that if they did return, one of Mal's friends would quickly tell Mal and Maleficent that they're back. After all, the Fairy Godmother was in charge of the potion, and she probably didn't need all three of the teenagers to help, at least not for the whole time.

It wouldn't be so bad if Mal wasn't getting worse. She was extremely pale and sweaty. As much as Maleficent tried to ignore it, she knew that if the potion wasn't made soon, it would be too late.

"Can I borrow your phone?" Maleficent asked. "I want to see where your friends are."

"They may not be able to answer," Mal said. "If they're in a forest, they probably won't get reception."

Maleficent sighed. "I guess."

"Can I ask you something?" Mal asked.

"Sure."

"What's going to happen after all this?" Mal asked.

Maleficent went to sit on Mal's bed. "What do you mean?"

"When this is all over, will you be going back to the Isle of the Lost?" Mal asked. "And will you want me to be evil? And will you still be?"

Maleficent didn't know how to answer. Once she learned what love is, she was so busy trying to help Mal that she didn't have time to think about what would happen next.

"You don't have to be evil," Maleficent said. "But as for the rest, I honestly don't know."

"At least think about turning good," Mal said. "That way, you can stay in Auradon and we can be together."

"I'll have to return to the island of the lost, at least for a little while," Maleficent said. "Remember, the Evil Queen, Jafar, and Cruella are my friends. Even if I did quit evil and move to Auradon, I'd have to say goodbye to them."

"I promise that if you do go back to the island of the lost, I'll come and visit you," Mal said.

"And I promise that no matter what happens, I'll always love you," Maleficent said.

Mal smiled, and Maleficent forced a smile as well. She couldn't stop thinking about what Mal said. She knew that love was strong, so maybe it was time for a change. But she was evil for years, so what else would she do?

Maleficent looked at Mal, and she made her decision. She knew that being evil meant that other people might go through what they are. She couldn't do that to anyone, especially not after what her and Mal were going through. Her thoughts were interrupted by Mal's loud scream.

She turned around and saw Mal crying and clutching her stomach tighter than she was before. "Mal?"

"Mom, you have to help me," Mal said between sobs. "It hurts too much."

"Just hang in there, Pumpkin," Maleficent said. "I'll look for a spell to ease the pain."

She grabbed the Spellbook and began looking for a spell to help her daughter. She almost wanted to rip the spells that wouldn't work out of the book in frustration, but instead had the control to just flip the page quickly. Finally, she came across a spell.

"Yamu Ichar Laen," Maleficent said. She looked at Mal, who seemed to relax slightly. "How are you feeling?"

"Better than before," Mal said.

Maleficent wanted to smile, even if only to reassure Mal that everything would be fine. However, she couldn't. She knew that the spell only managed to ease the pain. Whatever was happening inside her body to cause the pain wasn't gone, and Maleficent had a feeling that it could kill Mal if a cure wasn't found soon.

Mal began crying again. "D…do you think I'm going to d…die?"

"Don't even think that," Maleficent said. "You're a strong girl, and you'll be able to last until the potion is made."

There was a silence for a few minutes until Jay rushed in the room. "The Fairy Godmother said the potion will take around a half-hour."

"Did everyone make it back O.K?" Mal asked.

Jay smiled. "Yeah. Evie broke a nail, but that's about the worst thing that happened."

Maleficent looked at Mal. "I told you that they'd be fine." She looked at Jay. "Tell the Fairy Godmother to hurry." Jay nodded and left.

It was quiet for a few minutes, with Maleficent nervously pacing around the room. Every time she looked at Mal, she seemed to be getting weaker. She was pacing for around fifteen minutes before seeing Mal's eyes slowly closing.

"Stay awake," Maleficent said. "The potion will be ready soon."

"Please, Mom," Mal said. "I'm so tired."

"No, Mal," Maleficent said. "You have to stay awake."

Maleficent could tell that Mal was trying, but she eventually lost the fight and fell unconscious.

"Mal!" Maleficent called, shaking her daughter. "Mal! Wake up!" When there was no answer, she frantically grabbed Mal's wrist and checked for a pulse. There was one, but it was weak.

She thought about her magic training, and remembered a spell used to awaken unconscious people. It was almost impossible for someone to do alone, but she had to try. "Jimu Hamu Vadir." However, there was no change. With nothing else she could do, Maleficent knelt down beside the bed and cried.

She heard footsteps enter the room. She looked, and it was Ben. He looked as shaking as Maleficent felt.

Ben looked at Maleficent. "Is she…?"

Maleficent shook her head. "She's alive, but barely." She wanted Ben to help with the spell, but knew that only fairies could do it, so it wouldn't work.

Ben sat down on Evie's bed and watched Mal as Maleficent looked at the clock. They still had ten minutes until the potion was ready, and the Fairy Godmother could help with the spell. She just hoped that Mal could hold on that long.


	5. What to do next?

**Just so you know, I'll be renaming the chapters and I may be doing small edits (nothing to affect the plot, I just left out some small things). Also, I'm sorry about the late update. I almost finished the chapter, but then wanted to change it.**

Each second that passed by made Maleficent more impatient for the potion. She checked her daughter's pulse almost every minute, afraid that the next time she checked, there would be nothing. To her relief, there was always one, but it was weak.

Ben said nothing the entire time, his head buried in his hands as he sat on Evie's bed. She wanted to comfort him, but couldn't think of anything to say. Finally, the Fairy Godmother, Evie, Jay, and Carlos arrived. When they saw Mal, they stopped in their tracks.

"We're too late," Carlos said. "If she's unconscious, then how is she supposed to drink the potion?"

"It may not be too late," Maleficent said. She looked at the Fairy Godmother. "There's a spell I know to awaken someone who fell unconscious, but it's difficult and can only be done by fairies. I can't do it myself."

The Fairy Godmother nodded. "I'll help. What's the spell?"

"Jimu Hamu Vadir," Maleficent said.

Maleficent and the Fairy Godmother said the spell together. It took a couple seconds, but Mal finally woke up. She seemed groggy, and Maleficent knew that they didn't have much time.

The Fairy Godmother gave Mal the potion. "Drink this. It'll make you feel better."

Mal slowly drank the potion, and she immediately seemed to look better. She was becoming less pale, and she wasn't sweating.

"How do you feel, Mal?" Maleficent asked.

"Much better," Mal said, smiling. "Thanks."

"So Mal will be O.K. now," Ben said. "Right?"

"Yes," the Fairy Godmother said. "She may feel tired and her stomach may still be slightly sore for a couple hours, but she'll be back to her normal self in the morning."

Everyone was relieved when they heard that. Maleficent hugged her daughter tightly, Evie gave Carlos a quick hug, the Fairy godmother smiled and sighed in relief, Jay sat down and smiled, and Ben kissed Mal on the cheek.

"You had me so worried, Mal," Maleficent said.

"I'm sorry," Mal said.

"Hey, we've all been tricked one way or another before," Jay said.

"We're just glad you're O.K," Evie said.

"And I promise that Greg and Chad are going to be punished," the Fairy Godmother said.

Mal looked at Ben. "You said you were looking for them, right?"

"Yes," Ben said. "I didn't find Chad, but I found Greg. That coward left as soon as he saw me." He looked at Mal. "You must not have kicked him hard enough if he managed to run off."

Mal laughed. "Give me a break. I was cursed."

"I'll call them both to my office in the morning," the Fairy Godmother said. "I'll have to hear their side of the story, but they'll likely end up being expelled."

"Good," Maleficent said. "I don't want them anywhere near Mal."

Carlos thought for a moment. "Wait a second, even if we were too late, couldn't you revive her like you did for other villains before you put them on the Isle of the Lost?"

"We needed a special crystal for it, and we used up all of it's power," the Fairy Godmother said.

Maleficent looked at her daughter. She didn't even think about how her and other villains were revived, but it still was hard hearing that. They were so close to being too late, and hearing that the crystal wouldn't save Mal was another reminder that she almost lost her daughter.

Mal looked at Maleficent and seemed to know what she was thinking. "It's O.K, Mom. I'm better now. It's all over."

"What do you plan to do now, Maleficent?" Evie asked.

"Yeah," Jay said. "I mean, after all you've been through, you can't decide to turn to evil now."

"I don't know," Maleficent said. "But I'm not going back to being evil. I can't make people suffer, especially not after learning what it feels like."

"You know, I'm planning on letting students from the Isle of the Lost come here for school be a regular program for the school," Ben said. "We could use someone to help run it, and who would be better than a former villain?"

"What do you say?" the Fairy Godmother said.

Maleficent looked at Mal. "Would it be O.K with you?"

Mal smiled. "Just don't embarrass me."

Maleficent smiled back. "I make no promises." She looked at Ben the Fairy Godmother. "I'd love to."

"Perfect." Ben said.

Just then, Carlos' stomach rumbled. "Why don't we get something to eat?"

"Good idea," Mal said, getting out of bed. "It's been a long day."

"There's a restaurant not to far from here," the Fairy Godmother said. " It's called Wayland Diner. Why don't I meet you all there? I told Jane that I'd be busy and that there were leftovers, but if she hasn't eaten yet, I'll invite her to."

"The more, the merrier," Mal said. With that, the Fairy Godmother left.

They were just about to leave when Jay looked at Maleficent. "Sorry for what I said before," Jay said. "You know, about how Mal was probably too scared to tell you if she wasn't feeling well."

Maleficent looked away. "What do you have to be sorry for? It's true."

"Yeah, but it was wrong," Jay said. "You changed."

"That doesn't change what I've done before," Maleficent said.

Jay seemed to know what she was talking about. "You know, me and Audrey are pretty close now. I could see if she'd take you to her Grandma so you can apologize to her."

Maleficent smiled. "Thanks."

Jay sent a text to Audrey, and they began walking towards the restaurant. A few minutes later, he got a reply.

"She said that they'd meet with you at her house at ten, as long as one of us goes with you," Jay said.

"I'll go," Mal said. "I mean, it's the weekend, so I won't be missing school."

"Sounds good to me," Maleficent said.

She knew she was going to have a busy day, but she didn't care. She was glad to have a fresh start, now that she learned how wonderful love was.


	6. The talk

**This is the last chapter. I hope that you liked reading it as much as I liked writing it. Also, sorry it took me so long. For some reason, I found this chapter hard to write.**

Maleficent looked at the large castle Jay told them to go to. "I guess this is their castle."

"Yeah," Mal said. "I'm sure the meeting will be fine."

Maleficent nodded, but couldn't believe that. After all, how could Queen Leah forgive her after everything she's done?

Maleficent sighed, and then went up to the door. There, a guard was waiting.

"State your name and business," the guard said.

"My name's Maleficent, and this is my daughter, Mal. We were invited here to talk to Queen Leah."

The guard nodded. "Follow me. I'll take you to where she'll talk to you."

Maleficent and Mal followed the guard to a nice, large room. It was nothing like Maleficent has seen on the Isle of the Lost. It was perfectly clean, and there were white couches around. She guessed this was where they had their unofficial discussions.

"Wait here," the guard said. "I will tell the Queen you've arrived."

"Thank you," Mal said.

The guard left, and Maleficent sat on one of the couches and tried to relax. She didn't think that apologizing to Queen Leah would make her as nervous as she did. She was grateful that Mal was there. She knew that having a familiar face would help Queen Leah and Audrey.

It was a few minutes later that Queen Leah, Aurora, and Audrey came in. "I heard about what happened yesterday," Audrey said. "I was away with my parents, and we were too busy to come back right away."

"Don't worry about it," Mal said. "I'm fine now."

Queen Leah looked at Maleficent. "I believe where is something you wanted to say to me?"

"I want to apologize," Maleficent said. "For everything I've done to your family."

"I see," Queen Leah said, crossing her arms. "If you don't mind me asking, what led you to this realization?"

Maleficent looked at Mal. "When Mal was cursed, I was afraid that I would lose her. I realized that I could never be responsible for a mother losing a child, and decided to stop my evil ways.

"And how do you know we can trust you?" Audrey asked.

"You didn't trust me when I first came to Auradon," Mal said.

"Well, I trust you now," Audrey said. "But only because you risked your life to save me from her." She stared at Maleficent when she said her, and Maleficent could not help but look away.

"And my mom saved me from dying from a cursed strawberry," Mal said. "After all, if she didn't find me when she did, I'd be hidden away somewhere and left to die."

Audrey seemed to relax a little bit. "I had no idea."

"So, are you going back to the aisle of the lost?" Queen Leah asked.

"For a week to pack up my belongings," Maleficent said. "But King Ben allowed me to move here."

Aurora turned to Maleficent. "I still can't forgive you after what you've done. But I suppose I can try to accept you living here."

"Me, to," Audrey said. "But if you hurt anyone else, especially my family, I'll find you."

Maleficent couldn't help but smile. "I think Mal would find me first."

Queen Leah sighed. "I forgive you."

"You do, Mom?" Aurora asked.

Queen Leah nodded. "She's been through the fear of possibly losing a child, which is something I can relate to."

"Thank you," Maleficent said. With that, her and Mal left.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A couple hours later, Mal and Maleficent stood by the limo that would take Maleficent to the Isle of the Lost.

"If you want, I can come with you," Mal said.

Maleficent shook her head. "I'll be gone for a week, so you'll miss school. Besides, almost everyone on the Isle watched the coronation, and I don't think they'd be happy to see you there."

"I guess," Mal said.

"Besides, Belle is helping King Ben find a house for me here, and I need someone to make sure it's not completely pink."

Mal smiled. "Don't worry. I'll be staying there over the summer, and I refuse to stay somewhere all pink and girly."

Maleficent hugged Mal. "That's my girl. I'll see you next week." With that, she got in the limo and left.


End file.
